投鼠忌器 tóu shǔ jì qì to fear to hit the mouse for fear of breaking the vase

Explanation

这个成语比喻做事有所顾忌，不敢放手去做，因为它可能会带来一些意想不到的负面影响。

This idiom means to be hesitant to do something because of fear of negative consequences.

Origin Story

战国时期，楚国有一位有名的将军叫廉颇。他曾经率领军队在战场上取得过很多胜利，因此深受楚王的信任。有一天，楚王要攻打邻国，便命令廉颇率领军队出征。廉颇率领军队出发后，发现敌军实力强大，而且还有很多精锐的骑兵，他心里很害怕。他担心自己的军队会被敌军打败，便开始犹豫起来，不知道该怎么办才好。这时，他的副将田单对他说：“将军，我们现在已经出征了，就应该勇往直前，不能投鼠忌器，如果我们畏惧不前，只会让敌人更加嚣张，最终我们就会失败！”廉颇听了田单的话，觉得很有道理，便下定决心，率领军队与敌军决一死战。最终，廉颇的军队大获全胜，楚王也因此更加信任他，并加封他为大将军。

zhàn guó shí qí, chǔ guó yǒu yī wèi yǒu míng de jiāng jūn jiào lián pō. tā céng jīng shuài lǐng jūn duì zài zhàn chǎng shàng qǔ dé guò hěn duō shèng lì, yīn cǐ shēn shòu chǔ wáng de xìn rèn. yǒu yī tiān, chǔ wáng yào gōng dǎ lín guó, biàn mìng lìng lián pō shuài lǐng jūn duì chū zhēng. lián pō shuài lǐng jūn duì chū fā hòu, fā xiàn dí jūn shí lì qiáng dà, ér qiě hái yǒu hěn duō jīng ruì de qí bīng, tā xīn lǐ hěn hǎi pà. tā dān xīn zì jǐ de jūn duì huì bèi dí jūn dǎ bài, biàn kāi shǐ yóu yù qǐ lái, bù zhī dào gāi zěn me bàn cái hǎo. zhè shí, tā de fù jiāng tián dān duì tā shuō: "jiāng jūn, wǒ men xiàn zài yǐ jīng chū zhēng le, jiù yīng gāi yǒng wǎng zhí qián, bù néng tóu shǔ jì qì, rú guǒ wǒ men wèi jù bù qián, zhǐ huì ràng dí rén gèng jiā xiāo zhāng, zuì zhōng wǒ men jiù huì shī bài!" lián pō tīng le tián dān de huà, jué de hěn yǒu dào lǐ, biàn xià dìng jué xīn, shuài lǐng jūn duì yǔ dí jūn jué yī sǐ zhàn. zuì zhōng, lián pō de jūn duì dà huò quán shèng, chǔ wáng yě yīn cǐ gèng jiā xìn rèn tā, bìng jiā fēng tā wéi dà jiāng jūn.

During the Warring States period in China, there was a famous general named Lian Po. He had led his army to many victories on the battlefield, and therefore enjoyed the trust of the King of Chu. One day, the King of Chu wanted to attack a neighboring country, so he ordered Lian Po to lead the army to war. After Lian Po's army set out, they found that the enemy army was very strong, and they also had many elite cavalry. He was very afraid and worried that his army would be defeated, so he began to hesitate, not knowing what to do. At this time, his deputy general Tian Dan said to him: "General, we have already set out on this expedition, and we should press on bravely, we should not be afraid to act because we are afraid of harming others. If we are afraid to move forward, it will only make the enemy more arrogant. In the end, we will fail!" Lian Po listened to Tian Dan's words and found them to be very reasonable, so he made up his mind and led his army to fight the enemy to the death. In the end, Lian Po's army won a great victory, and the King of Chu trusted him even more and appointed him as the grand general.

Usage

这个成语常用来形容做事犹豫不决，缺乏果断，不敢放手去做。

zhè ge chéng yǔ cháng yòng lái xíng róng zuò shì yóu yù bù jué, quē fá guǒ duàn, bù gǎn fàng shǒu qù zuò.

This idiom is often used to describe someone who is hesitant, indecisive, and afraid to take action.

Examples

• 他做事总是瞻前顾后，投鼠忌器，所以很少有成就。

  tā zuò shì zǒng shì zhān qián gù hòu, tóu shǔ jì qì, suǒ yǐ hěn shǎo yǒu chéng jiù.

  He is always hesitant and afraid to act, so he rarely achieves anything.

• 面对困难，我们不能投鼠忌器，要敢于迎难而上。

  miàn duì kùn nan, wǒ men bù néng tóu shǔ jì qì, yào gǎn yú yíng nán ér shàng

  In the face of difficulties, we should not be afraid to act, but should dare to face them head-on.

Related Idioms

• 瞻前顾后

• 畏首畏尾

• 顾虑重重

• 瞻之在前，忽焉在后

• 事事小心

• 谨小慎微

Opposite Idioms

• 无所畏惧

• 勇往直前

• 敢作敢为

• 义无反顾

• 临危不惧